AN: I know it's again a long time since I update but school and FFXIV kept me real busy. Sorry. I hope you enjoy this chapter and I know I said I wouldn't publish another story until I had finished this but I couldn't resist. But I promise I will finish this story as well. Please take a look at it and I promise for this new story I will answer every review personally with a p.m. Anyway enjoy this new chapter! ^_^
Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy X or X-2
Chapter 29
The walk to the airship was the most torturous one he ever had to endure. He tried to ignore the two females for most of the time. Rikku babbled the whole time and Paine tried to irk him with the horrible nickname Yuna gave him. He had to remind himself to ignore them and not get annoyed with them.
They are Yuna's best friends. You cannot kill them. He thought when he finally sat in the cabin, sipping some Shoopuf milk. "Bad day, Mishter Tidush?" Barkeep asked him while he cleaned a glass. Darling looked curiously as well, as much as Tidus could tell. It was rather hard reading a Hypello's expression.
"You could say that." The blond sighed and emptied his glass. "Thank you for the drink." Tidus said politely and stood up. "Any time." Barkeep answered him and smiled, at least the blond believed that. He took the lift to the Bridge where everyone else was. If he had stayed any longer in the cabin 'his bodyguards' would definitely have followed him and that's something he really wanted to avoid.
Rikku impatiently rocked forth and back on the balls of her feet and was still babbling on. Tidus wondered briefly if the girl ever stopped talking. He doubted it somehow. She probably wasn't capable to stop talking. The thought amused him greatly. As long as she wasn't always hanging around him it was alright. Nice, little, innocent Rikku she was fun as long as you didn't get an overdose of her.
Paine was lazily leaning against a wall and watched the younger Al-Bhed in boredom. Tidus often wondered what made her tick. The one thing he definitely knew about her was to not piss her off. A pissed off Paine was even worse than a pissed off Yuna. And he knew that she loved to be sarcastic and to tease him. The latest item on her list was his horrible nickname from his lovely wife. He had to pay her back for that someday.
As usually Brother was sitting in his pilot seat and arguing with his sister on Al-Bhed. Tidus was too lazy to try to translate it. He still didn't like the tattooed Al-Bhed. His disturbing crush on Yuna gave Tidus the creeps and Brother's character always managed to rile him up. The blond Blitzer doubted that they would ever get along and he really wouldn't try to. He didn't like Brother. It was as simple as that.
Buddy was sitting in the co-pilots seat and made sure the coordinates the Celcius was flying to were correct. Tidus didn't have anything against that Al-Bhed. He was definitely a much better company than Brother and much more trustworthy.
Shinra was still with Gippal, Baralai and Nooj and helping with the war effort. His inventions were a great help. Tidus sat down in his empty chair and watched the landscape fly by the window. He was in no mood to talk with anyone really. The blond Blitzer missed Yuna greatly. He knew how pathetic that was, considering the fact that they only were a few hours apart but he couldn't help it.
Tidus missed the flowery scent of her hair, the way her smile lit her whole features, her beautiful and bi-colored eyes and most of all he simply missed her warming presence. No matter how down he felt she could always cheer him up just with being there. He sighed and leaned his chin on his hand in boredom.
He wanted to be with his pregnant wife and not on this damn mission to end this stupid war!
Sighing in resignation he kept on staring out of the window. He was surprised to notice that they were close to Mount Gagazet already. Hours must have passed while he had pondered. Shrugging he got up and straightened his clothes. Ignoring the still bickering siblings he stepped next to Buddy.
"How long?" He simply asked and tried to make sense of the controls Buddy was looking at. "Max half an hour." The co-pilot of the Celcius said with confidence. Tidus nodded his face showing relief. The faster they got there, the faster they were back, the faster he was back with Yuna and their soon-to-be-born child.
The last minutes of the flight Tidus remained standing and crossed his arms. It was noticeably getting colder even in the airship. He was no stranger to cold. Zanarkand was never a very warm place but still not as cool as Mount Gagazet.
With a slight shudder the Celcius landed. Buddy turned around to Tidus. "We will wait here. As soon as you are finished we will bring you back to Besaid." The blond Blitzer nodded with a thankful smile. "Alllright, guys! Let's do this! The Gullwings won't fail this mission!" Rikku said with a giggle and thrust her fist in the air. Tidus rolled his eyes at her childish behavior and noticed out of the corner of his eye that Paine was doing much the same. With a large grin on her face Rikku began to bounce up the stairs to the corridor that led to the lift when she suddenly stopped.
"Wait!" She shouted and startled all people on the bridge. "What?" Paine asked unnerved. She, like the blond Blitzer, wanted to end this mission as fast as possible. To be around a moody Tidus all the time was not very enjoyable.
"We need to do our sign!" Rikku said exasperated. Tidus frowned at her wondering which sign she meant? He dimly remembered that Yuna told him about something alike. Paine sighed and rubbed her temple. "If you haven't noticed" She said sarcastically. "there is one person missing for that." Tidus had the feeling that she wanted to avoid this certain sign this time around. He smirked at the thought.
A mischievous smile began to spread on Rikku's face and her eyes turned on him. Tidus suddenly had a very bad feeling about this. He involuntary took a step back. "What?" He asked. Rikku's smirk grew, making Tidus discomfort grow as well. What was going on in the crazy blonde's head?
"We have Tidus." Rikku said cryptically. Paine seemed to catch on and a smug grin began to spread on her face. Tidus knew this look. She only got such a grin when she found a new way to embarrass him. This trip was getting worse every minute. But why were such things always happening to him?
"Then let's do it. Come over here, Tidus." The smug expression hadn't left Paine's face yet and he could feel the amused looks of the two males behind him. Rikku had already bounced down the stairs again and was standing opposite the black-clad warrior.
Tidus hesitantly moved closer and eyed them suspiciously. Both stretched out their hands to each other and motioned him to do the same. Maybe they wanted to bite his hand off. That would be creepy and somehow he doubted it.
Reluctantly he placed his hand near theirs and waited. "You just have to say T and then you see how it goes." Paine said and Rikku nodded enthusiastically. Tidus frowned mildly. Just T? Didn't sound that bad for now.
"T." He said when he found the courage. Immediately Rikku followed with shouting "R" and Paine with calling "P". Then they thrust their hands in the air and cheered loudly. Well, at least Rikku did that, Paine simply smiled. Tidus' brows furrowed. So that was the thing that should embarrass him?
It hadn't been that bad. "I thought you wanted to embarrass me?" He finally couldn't resist asking. Paine smirked at him and patted his shoulder. "I just wanted to see your panicked face when you thought we would." She said smugly. Tidus sighed and lowered his head. She got him again. Snickering to herself she went up the stairs that led to the corridor that led to the lift.
Rikku went after her, giggling when she saw his defeated expression. "Come on, Tidie!" She said, already at the top of the stairs. "We have a mission to complete!" Tidus sighed another time and reluctantly followed his two bodyguards. He ignored the laughter of the two men behind him. Tidus had still some pride left after all. But only some.
Mount Gagazet was as icy and snowy as he remembered. If one place of Spira never changed it was definitely this mountain. He wrapped his arms around himself to get rid of the chill to no avail. In the Ronso village Tidus could make out the soldiers of Nooj, Gippal and Baralai. He was surprised when he saw Ronsos as well. Would they fight, too? Until this point they had taken a very neutral position.
Tidus followed Paine who resolutely made her way through the crowd and an as usual bouncy Rikku. It was not hard to guess where they were going. Soon they arrived at their destination. Three men and one Ronso were huddled together there and discussing something with each other.
When the three approached they turned around to look at them, their conversation stopping for the moment. "Gippal!" Rikku said more giggly as usual and quickly jumped into the arms of the Machine Faction leader. He laughed and hugged her back, his one eye sparkling in amusement.
"Hello to you, too, Rikku!" One of Tidus' eyebrows rose. Had he missed something while he had been gone? They seemed very cozy with each other. Frowning mildly he watched the girl he thought of like a sister being cuddled by a man. He didn't know if he was very pleased with that.
His attention was drawn away from the scene when Paine stepped up to Baralai and carefully took his hand. "I'm back." She said and smiled softly at him. Tidus was stunned that she was capable of such an expression of affection. He had never seen anything like it on her face. "I see." Baralai answered her as simple as she had spoken.
If Tidus had still doubts that they were a pair then they were blown away when the Praetor turned to him, keeping a hold on Paine's hand and said. "Good to see you again, Sir Tidus. We feared the worst." "Nah, I'm not that easy to kill." The blond Blitzer answered automatically. Why hadn't Yuna told him of those developments? He sighed inwardly. What else had changed when he had been gone?
Too deep in his thoughts he wasn't prepared for two strong, fury arms to hug him tight. "Kimahri glad Tidus back." The blond Blitzer gasped in surprise for breath. "Glad...to be back, Kimahri." He barely got out.
Tidus was relieved when the hornless Ronso placed him back on the ground. With a mild grimace he was rubbing his hurting chest. Did he have to squeeze him so hard? "Tidus made Yuna worry. Kimahri can't forgive that." The Ronso elder said suddenly seriously and with a slight growl in his face.
Without fear Tidus looked up into Kimahri's face and replied. "I know and I can't forgive myself for it either." The Ronso elder examined Tidus for a bit longer before he relaxed and nodded, accepting his answer as truth.
"Don't worry us like that again, Tidus." Gippal said cheerfully and gave him a friendly slap on the back. Tidus smiled at him and could see Nooj nod at him out of the corner of his eye. His way of saying "Good to have you back."
"Straight to business?" Gippal asked his stature changing to a serious one in seconds. Everyone of the small circle nodded in agreement. Like before only the faction leaders and the Ronso elder they huddled together. Paine remained close to Baralai and Rikku stayed next to Gippal, out of the corner of his eye Tidus could see them holding hands.
Nooj was the one speaking up first. "We should inform you of the situation at hand, Sir Tidus before proceeding to plan our next move." All people in the small circle agreed with the Youth League leader. Baralai continued after that was said and drew Tidus attention.
"It's true that we fought the enemy army in the Calm Lands but what never flooded to the media was the fact that we couldn't push them back one bit. Their weapons and defenses were too strong, we could never break through. Too many were dying and so we decided to keep safe and just stop them until we could make a plan. Until there was something we could do."
The group's expressions were grim and everyone nodded in understanding. "So it was a huge surprise to us when they suddenly retreated. With enough time they could have defeated us." Gippal threw in unusually serious.
"So you think it's a trap?" Tidus asked catching what the leaders had on their minds. They nodded. "Yes," Nooj said his worry clearly reflected in his eyes. "we do not wish to loose more men but we can't let such an opportunity pass if they really are retreating." Tidus nodded in understanding. His assumptions about the situation were correct then. This was a hard decision they had to make. If they were wrong...He didn't want to think about it.
"We want to know your opinion on this matter, Lord Tidus." Gippal said suddenly and Tidus' head snapped around. He hadn't been given that title in a long time. It only showed how very serious this situation was. Furrowing his brow in thought he answered carefully. "I think it would be best to sent a small unit after them and see where they are going and what they plan. The army should wait until it's clear."
In anticipation he watched the faces around them, all of them seemed to contemplate his plan. "Kimahri agree with Tidus. Kimahri think it's best course of action." The blond Blitzer smiled thankfully at the elder Ronso who nodded at him in return, his eyes warm. It was a long time since Tidus had seen the big blue fur ball.
Nooj next gave his opinion on the matter. "We thought about something similar and agree fully with you. But now is the question who we will sent?" It was a question as much as a statement. The small group fell silent again. Each deep in their thoughts.
"I will go." Paine was the first to speak up, startling everyone. They were staring at her in shock. "What?" She asked irritated after noticing their stares. Quickly Tidus shook his head and saw the others do the same. "I will go, too, then. The Gullwings are a team forever!" Rikku piped up cheerfully and grinned in the round. Tidus swore he could see Paine threw her a small smile of thanks.
"Kimahri will follow and protect the holy mountain from the intruders." "Yay! Big guy!" Rikku squealed and bounced on the spot. Tidus shifted uncomfortably. He wanted to go too but he had promised Yuna not to do anything too dangerous. Thoughtfully he chewed on his bottom lip but she said too, if something came up he should call her over sphere.
Straightening up he said. "I will go, too." The others smiled at him and Rikku gave him a cheerful slap on the arm. "Can't let us have all the glory, can you, Tidie?" She asked slyly and the blond Blitzer smiled nervously not really paying attention to her.
"We would go too." Baralai said and motioned to the other two leaders as well. "But we have to stay behind to coordinate our troops when the time comes. Tomorrow at sunrise you will move out. Be prepared." With that said the group began to disperse and scatter into many directions. Only Tidus remained frozen to his spot. Paine and Rikku remained in his line of sight, keeping an eye on him like they promised Yuna.
His brows furrowed when the name of his lovely wife entered his mind. How would he be able to convince her that what he was about to do was the right decision?
How?
